‘It’s been tricky’: how the marriage of Chris Pratt and Anna Faris unraveled

Actors Chris Pratt and Anna Faris may have shocked Hollywood by announcing their separation, but recent interviews with the pair paint a picture of a marriage under duress due to Pratt’s sudden rise to fame.

Pratt, 38, and Faris, 40, met in 2007 on the set of the film Take Me Home Tonight while Faris was still married to her first husband, actor Ben Indra.

After her divorce, Pratt made his move and the pair were married two years later, welcoming their son Jack in 2012.

On Monday, the couple announced their split, saying they were both “really disappointed” and had “tried hard for a long time”.

Fans of the so-called power couple are now looking for clues a split was on the cards – with many accusing Jennifer Lawrence, Pratt’s co-star in 2016’s Passengers, of driving a wedge between the beloved pairing.

But past interviews with both stars suggest the split has been a long time coming, with Faris recently admitting loneliness and Pratt alluding to the challenges of his movie star schedule.

Anna Faris and Chris Pratt at a screening of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 in April 2. Photo: Getty

At the time of their 2009 wedding, Faris was the more famous of the pair, having appeared in five movies that year alone, as well as the successful Scary Movie franchise and critical successes like Brokeback Mountain andLost in Translation.

In fact, Faris attributed her divorce from Indra to her swift ascent, telling Marie Claire in 2011 her newfound fame “destroyed” their marriage because “the divide became too great”.

Pratt, by comparison, was maintaining a relatively low profile outside of his role on comedy series Parks and Recreation. He was also, by his own admission, overweight and getting typecast as the obnoxious fat friend.

But in 2014, Pratt was cast as a lead in Guardians of the Galaxy, a role for which he shed nearly 30 kilograms and muscled up.

He became an overnight sex symbol and Guardians grossed $US773 million worldwide, making him a bona fide movie star.

But Pratt admitted he also became “less fun” to be around.

“I focus more,” he told GQ magazine. “[My wife] doesn’t get to cook for me the way she used to.

“I was like a great pet, fat guy,” he said, joking that Faris “preferred me fat” because “she’s a feeder”.

Pratt had his fair share of standing in Faris’ shadow before his big break, recounting to GQ how he had been the guy “holding the purse at events” with actors “blatantly” hitting on Faris in front of him.

Lately it’s been Faris who has received the short end of the stick.

“I take pride in how great my relationship is with Chris, but having said that, in this crazy world where he’s off doing movies and I’m in LA raising our child, I’m going to feel vulnerable, like any normal human would,” she said during her podcast Underqualified in November 2016.